The Pines Twins and the Last Crusade
by Spontaneous Fiction
Summary: <html><head></head>In the year 1938, the famous Pines' siblings (twin archaeologists extraordinaire) Great Uncle Stanford Pines has gone missing. When a wealthy collector by the name of Gideon Gleeful tells them the nature of his disappearance, the two follow their uncle's trail of research in hopes of finding him. But what happens when they dig too deep and discover truths that should have remained?</html>
1. Prologue

**A/N:** I'm called "_Spontaneous_ Fiction" for a reason you know. And here I am with another novelty and befuddlement. I'm disappointed in all of you for not making this crossover sooner. Like, really guys we were gifted an allusion to this in the 2nd episode of season 1 and NO ONE thought to try it out? Oh well. Without further ado, I bid you adieu.

Disclaimer: It is common knowledge that I do not possess the right towards Gravity Falls. I do however possess a Stan fez. Oh, and I don't claim ownership to anything created by George Lucas or Steven Spielberg. The franchise of Indiana Jones belongs solely to them, as well as their abandoned scripts and their used ones.

Prologue: What's Old, Shiny, and Belongs in a Museum?

_1912_

The hot blistering heat of the California shone down on the group of riders on horseback. They followed the beaten path of a trail, one created many years before their arrival. Their horses plodded steadily on, at times tossing their heads for no reason other than to probably look pretty. They're horses. Who knows what they were really doing. They certainly didn't ask to be in the heat on a day like this.

The leader of the group pulled his mount to a stop and the others behind him followed suit.

"Dis-mount!" he called out. The group of teenaged Boy Scouts collectively swung their legs over the saddles, dismounting from each of their rides. They all looked around their environment, some more eagerly than others. Their troop leader had stopped them by the side of the mountain. Many of the boys quickly discovered that the mountainside was riddled with holes and caves. The adventurous Scouts were fully prepared to investigate all of them and set out to look at a few.

"Alright boys, don't anybody wander off!" Their Scoutmaster called out. "Some of these caves can run for miles and I don't want to fill out any paperwork if any o' you got lost in them." His words went ignored by the teens, as words said by adults generally are. Teens these days.

Two of the scouts were already well into one of the cavern tunnels. At first they thought it wouldn't have led them far. But as they kept wandering into the depths of the mountain they discovered that it was deeper and further than they originally thought. The air grew colder and the floor wetter as they kept walking.

"Maybe we should head back," one of them said. He was anxiously looking over his shoulder, back in the direction they came.

"Wait, did you hear something," the other whispered.

"No! Look let's go back before Mr. Corduroy gets-"

"Shut up!" The boy in front grabbed his friend's arm, pulling him forward much to the other boy's protests. After a few more meters they did hear something. Voices. They echoed down the tunnel in front of them almost eerily. The two edged up the cave tunnel cautiously. Ahead of them was what appeared to be candle light, most likely from a lantern.

"I've got something!" a voice shouted from ahead. The boys peeked their heads around the corner of a connecting tunnel where the light source originated from. There were four men in the adjacent cavern. Three of them showed signs that they had previously been digging. Dirt and clay covered their faces and parts of their clothing. Only the fourth man, in a fedora hat and brown leather jacket, had no traces of dirt on him. One of the diggers was busily trying to open an old wooden chest, finally jabbing his spade at the lock which successfully shattered, leaving the chest to be opened. The man in leather (obviously the leader) stepped forward to open the chest. He began pulling things out of the chest, carelessly dropping them on the cave floor until he paused and slowly pulled out an object from the bottom. The light of the lanterns reflected off of the object and smaller dots of light danced on the walls. The fedora man turned slightly and the boys' eyes widened in shock.

Held in the man's hands was an ornate golden and bejeweled cross. They held back their gasps as the other robbers began cheering, shouting, "We're rich! Woohoo!" and similar exclamations.

"What are they doing? Hey Dip. Dipper? Dipper?" The scout Dipper ignored his friend, intently studying the golden cross in the man's hand. After a while he began to recognize it and grit his teeth in anger.

"That's the Cross of Coronado. Given to him in 1521. That artifact belongs in a museum," he hissed quietly. His friend said nothing, only giving him a worried look. Dipper's mind began to race. They had to get that cross away from these thieves and to the sheriff. He turned back to his fellow scout.

"Go back to the others. Find Mister Corduroy and tell him there are men looting the caves. Have him bring the sheriff." He whispered. The other boy blinked and nodded.

"What are you gonna do Dip?" he asked. Dipper glanced back around the corner to the four men. Apparently they found more artifacts because the three began intently digging again, the leather man urging them on. The cross was placed on top of their other equipment on the other side of the cavern. Dipper shrugged at his friend.

"I'll make it up as I go along."

Dipper had never done many "sneaky" things in the past. Once or twice he'd tried sneaking past his Grandpa and Great Uncle to get out of the house. Unfortunately in one of the two adults' spare time they taught their pet how to guard the house, resulting in the teen getting caught on both attempts. But this time there was no guard, and the men were all too focused on their digging to pay any attention to the boy as he crept into the cavern. He made sure his footsteps were light, barely making a sound against the wet floor. Keeping an eye on the looters, Dipper reached out and grasped the golden cross tightly in his hands. He held his breath as one of the men straightened up, but he was only stretching his back and went back to work, the man in leather barking more orders at them.

"Dig with your hands damn it, not your mouth!" He said. Dipper put the cross carefully in his back pocket. His heart pounded like crazy in his chest. Was he actually going to get away like this? Mind focused completely on the looters, he failed to notice the duffel bag of equipment in front of his feet. He stumbled forward, arms spinning to regain his balance and knocking a nearby lantern to the ground. It shattered and extinguished the light, causing the four men to shout in surprise at the sudden loss of lighting.

Dipper picked himself up and scrambled out of the small cavern, making a run for the tunnel. The man with the fedora shouted again, his angry words echoing against the walls and following Dipper out of the mountain.

"Get your heads out of those holes and _get that thief!_"

Shoes slapping against the floor of the tunnel, Dipper ran and ran fast. Just as he thought his heart or lungs would explode he shot out of the cave and into the open air. Glancing around, he suddenly noticed no one was around.

"Mister Corduroy! Alex? Anybody?" He began calling out. No one answered him. The teen groaned in frustration.

"Everybody's lost but me," he murmured. The shouts from the caves got louder and Dipper spun around in panic. The men were going to gain on him. He stuck four fingers in his mouth and blew, creating a shrill and short whistle. A whinny came from the trail and his horse quickly trotted over to him. Wasting no time, Dipper swung himself onto the mount, snapping the reigns as soon as he was in the saddle. The auburn horse took off at a gallop and raced away from the cave just as the men came flooding out of it. One of them took aim with their pistol and fired off at Dipper, but it was no use and the boy was already gone in a cloud of dust riding as hard as he could back to town, the Cross of Coronado stashed in his back pocket. The man in the fedora and leather jacket shouted at his fellow looters, ordering them to get their trucks to chase after the kid. As they did he watched the quickly receding dust cloud of horse and rider. And he gave a small smile.

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><p>Dipper didn't really know what he was going to do with his horse. He had only planned as far ahead as getting out of the cave alive and unnoticed though so far he'd only gotten the alive part down. He galloped into town avoiding automobiles and angry pedestrians, intent on making it to his house. Soon he pulled his horse to a stop outside a run down two story house. There was barely anything to the lawn except for a lone tree and a mailbox in the front of the house, the name "Pines" painted in light blue on the box. Dipper hurriedly dismounted again, his frantic actions almost causing him to fall off instead, and tied the animal up on the tree in the front yard. He then sprinted to the front door, swinging it open and dashing to his grandfather's study.<p>

"Grandpa Stan!" He shouted. The man was generally always in the study, working on some thing or other like translation of old documents. As he rounded the corner to the hall he crashed into something, sending him backwards and to the floor.

"Hey watch where you're going Bro." Across from him on the ground was his twin sister Mabel. Even in the midsummer California heat, she still insisted on wearing a bright sweater. Dipper helped her up muttering a quick "sorry" before heading back to his grandfather's study.

"Where's the fire?" Mabel called after him.

"Tell you later!" Her brother replied. Mabel sighed and went her separate way, then gasped as she saw what was standing in her yard by the tree.

"Oh my gosh a horse!" She squealed in delight and ran outside immediately. Meanwhile Dipper quickly opened the door to the study, excitement bubbling in his chest as he prepared to show his Grandpa what he'd found.

"Grandpa Stan," he started.

"Out,"

"But Gramps, you won't believe-"

"If its that important, count to twenty," the man said. His back was turned to Dipper, hunched over his desk. Papers and books were scattered across it. Dipper contained his frustration and began to count to twenty. It was an exercise the family had come up with when they had "important" things to say. If you still needed to talk about it after making it to twenty slowly, then it was deemed so. But his Grandpa stopped him by holding up a finger.

"Do it in Latin," he said.

"Unus, duo, tres, quattuor," he began reciting, the excitement from earlier quickly dissipating. His eyes wandered to the window which showed a view of the street. As he slowly kept counting, the sheriff's car suddenly pulled into view. In the backseat sat his friend Alex, who look incredibly proud of himself. Dipper slowly began retreating from the room, still counting in Latin but it didn't seem as though his grandfather was noticing anything he was doing. With a last look at the hunched and working figure, the teen left. Stanley Pines made a few more etches with his fountain pen onto the page.

"Three trials. Illustratio," the man muttered under his breath. The image of an Eye of Providence stared back at him from the page, leaving his questions unanswered.

Outside the house Alex ran up to meet Dipper, pointing excitedly at the car.

"I did it! I got the sheriff," he exclaimed. Said Sheriff by the name of Blubbs exited his vehicle, coming up to the two boys.

"Now as I understand it you found something in the caves?" the man asked. Dipper and Alex nodded.

"You have it then?" Dipper extracted Coronado's Cross from his back pocket, handing it to the sheriff. The older man took it, and turned around back to his black vehicle. Failing to notice it before, Dipper now saw that there were two passengers in the car as well. One of them was a big pudgy man in a white suit and straw hat, and the other was-

"You!" Dipper gasped. The man in the fedora hat grinned at him, tipping his hat. Sheriff Blubbs handed the cross to the man in the suit who looked very pleased to have the object in his possession.

"I hope you won't press charges against the boy," Sheriff Blubbs was saying to the man.

"No of course not. Everything's in order now and the artifact is safe. My business in this town is done," he replied, eyes wandering hungrily over the cross. The sight of it made Dipper sick. He had been so close! If only that man hadn't bribed the sheriff, the cross would have been safe in the hands of a museum. Now it wasn't, and there was nothing he could do about it.

"Hold on a minute boss," the car door opened and the fedora man stepped out, walking towards Dipper. He glared at the man, who smiled ruefully.

"Look, you lost today kid. But that doesn't mean you have to like it," he said. Then with a second thought, he took off his prized hat, plopping it on top of Dipper's messy brown hair. He turned, gave a backhanded wave and made his way back to the sheriff's car.

"See you around kid," he called out. Dipper adjusted the fedora on his head as the car pulled away, the teen watching it go. He swore, right then at that moment, in front of his grandfather's and great uncle's house with its shabby painted mailbox and horse tied to the tree, that he'd get that cross back. It belonged in a museum. And Dipper Pines would be damned that he'd be the one to put it in one.

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><p><strong>AN:** PHEW. Oh my stars that was a bunch to write. What is this, like 2,000 words? Yep. After this I can get to "normal" sized chapters. I just really wanted this prologue to be one chapter though, seeing as its the intro. Basically this will be a re-write of "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" but of course with Gravity Falls characters instead. I've also taken the liberty of changing scenes around to best fit the characters and the original stories from both mediums. Please send a review my way if you like what you see, or have things to point out to me. I'm only human after all, and make tons of mistakes. This is Sponty, signing off 'till next time!


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N****_: _**Sponty strikes again with another update. But will it last? What kind of an update schedule does she keep? And what of her other works? Sit down in your corner children. I keep my own darn schedule and am too lazy to explain it. Also I made one teensy tiny little edit to the last chapter/the prologue. Don't worry its not plot relevant. A little bird just reminded me that Jeeps didn't exist in 1912 so I changed the word "Jeep" to "truck" instead. Thanks again fair reviewer! Now, on with the show!

**Disclaimer:** *hands cards to Danny* Again? Okay fine. _Indiana Jones_ and its franchise is copyrighted to its original owners of Paramount Pictures and George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. _Gravity_ _Falls_ is owned by Alex Hirsch and Walt Disney Animation Studios. The author, write name here, does not claim ownership of any of the material in this literary work.

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><p><span>Chapter 1: "Cross" roads. Get It? A Pun. Except There's No Roads.<span>

_Portuguese Bay. 1938_

In retrospect the plan was full of holes. But then again a lot of previous plans had flaws as well yet ended up with him relatively "high and dry" so to speak. Or at the very least not dead. Currently he was still trying to keep the "not-dead" part up. Staying high and dry was another matter, especially in the event of an ocean storm. Waves crashed against the cargo ship, tossing tons of sea water onto the deck and drenching anyone who happened to be there.

Dipper Pines was soaked, bruised, and in desperate need of a drink. Two men held his arms behind his back and a third dealt another blow to his already bloodied face. He grimaced as fresh blood ran from his nose and more of it filled his mouth. The underling that was turning him into a punching bag suddenly stepped aside. White suit pants filled his vision, and he looked up to see the man with the straw hat. His face was older than it had been all those years ago in California. But it still made Dipper sick to his stomach.

"Small world Doctor Pines," the man in the white suit said above the roar of the waves and storm.

"Too small for the both of us," the younger Pines returned. The other man ignored him. Typical. Did no one ever appreciate his back-talk? Straw-Hat reached down to the golden cross secured on Dipper's belt and removed it. The male Pines struggled against his captors but their grip was too tight on him. He glared at the man, who frowned back as he looked over his prized possession.

"This is the second time I've had to reclaim my property from you," he said. Another wave crashed against the deck, showering Dipper in more water. He sputtered, coughing out salty sea water and more blood.

"That's the property of Coronado!" He shouted back, infuriated and partially blinded by the water that splashed against his face.

"Coronado is dead as are any relatives! The Cross belongs with me," the other man replied.

"It belongs in a museum!" Struggling more, Dipper made another attempt at the artifact. The man in the suit scowled at his attempts.

"So do you!" He retorted. At that point a small amount of blood was resting again in Dipper's mouth. With a last glare, he spat it at the man's suit. The already wet material reddened quickly, and he smiled grimly as the man in the now bloodstained suit seethed at him.

"Throw him overboard!" He commanded to his men. The two henchmen dragged a still struggling Dipper to the edge of the deck. _Oh no,_ Dipper thought furiously. Damn it he had come this far already, stowing away on this cargo ship to get the closest shot of recovering the Cross. He vowed as a teen, standing on his front lawn that he would get the artifact back, and no 30 foot crashing waves or rich men in suits were going to stop him.

The men dragged him past a load of fuel drums when he seized his chance. Using them as leverage, Dipper leapt up, kicking his feet at the metal clamp that held the drums together. He gave everything into the kick and was overjoyed when it snapped open, releasing the bars holding the drums. They began to shift with the rolling ship and the men holding Dipper panicked, loosening their grips on him. As the men were distracted Dipper then elbowed both of them in the stomachs. The men fell over in surprise, leaving a freed Dipper Pines to chase after the man in the suit.

The ship reeled as the waves struck the sides. Dipper was thrown off balance. A hell of a lot of good it would do him if he was thrown off the ship like this. The white suited man was on the metal ladder heading for the bridge of the ship. As the deck tipped back and forth under his feet, Dipper scrambled to the metal bars and gripped them tightly as another wave swept onto the deck with enough force that would have sent him overboard had he not held onto the ladder. He shook his head to clear his wet hair from his face and began his quick ascent after the Cross.

Straw-Hat was already well ahead of him at this point. But there wasn't very far to run once he was up on the bridge. Dipper knew he at least had the man cornered. He climbed over the ledge and inwardly groaned. He didn't expect there to be more goons. Yet here they were, menacingly cracking their knuckles and prepared to beat him to a pulp. Fantastic. Like he wasn't beat senselessly enough already. Damn it he had a Cross to recover and a schedule to meet.

"Alright boys let's make this quick," he said. The first brute rushed at him and Dipper wasted no time sending a punch to the man's face, knocking him down. The others weren't so easy. One of them swung a crowbar at his head and the man had to quite literally drop completely to the ground to avoid getting hit. He rolled to the side to avoid a downward blow from the same bar. Scrambling to his feet, Dipper briefly considered simply shooting his opponents. Unfortunately they had taken his pistol, leaving him to grapple hand to hand with the men. The one with the crowbar swung at him again, forcing the archeologist to sidestep him. He went in for a punch and was satisfied to hear a crunch as his fist came in contact with the man's nose.

Groaning in pain with blood pouring out of his nose, the brute dropped the crowbar, clutching at his stained face. Dipper picked up the dropped object and gave a return swing to the man's back. He fell forward and crumpled. Dipper turned around to the rest of the men on the bridge. There were only two or so more, and he glared defiantly at them.

"Anyone else want a piece?" He shouted over the wind and thunder. Lightning flashed behind him and the cronies held up their hands in surrender, fear taking over instead. They concluded that he was some sort of madman, and to be fair they had every right to be afraid. Dipper was at this point not a patient man nor the friendliest looking. His face was covered in bruises, cuts, and blood plus the fact that he was wielding a heavy crowbar gave them every excuse to back down. Seizing the opportunity, Dipper shoved past them, still gripping the bar tightly in his hand, and approached a cornered Straw-Hat.

The man was backed against the railing of the upper deck, thick hands clutching the Cross tightly against his chest as though trying to ward off Dipper like an evil spirit. Dipper pointed his crowbar at the man threateningly.

"Hand it over," he said. The man in front of him didn't respond. Patience all but spent Dipper took a single step towards him. Before he could take another however both of them were thrown to the deck as an explosion blasted them off their feet. Distracted Dipper turned around to see the lower deck becoming encased in flames. He swore. The damned fuel drums must have hit something. He vaguely remembered there being oil lamps on the lower deck. When he had loosened the drums one of them must have cracked open and in the ship's tossing an oil lamp ignited the fuel. This was bad. He had to get that cross now or never.

Flames rising behind him and engulfing the ship, Dipper turned back to the Cross. Straw-Hat was beginning to get up. Dipper leapt up faster though and tackled him back to the ground. They rolled over each other on the metal deck, each fighting for the golden cross. Dipper grunted as he was elbowed harshly in the stomach, but he held on to the other's arms to prevent any quick escape.

_Come on Dipper! Use your head!_ He told himself. He and Straw-Hat were practically nose to nose now. Suddenly he was struck with inspiration. And he struck the other man in the head with a hefty head-butt. Not expecting the blow the other man collapsed backwards with a grunt of pain, his hands loosened their grip on Dipper's jacket and the Cross. The golden artifact clattered to the deck.

"Damn," Dipper groaned, rubbing his forehead. That move had hurt like hell. He reached out and took the cold cross, shakingly standing up. His head was throbbing and to make matters worse the flames had practically reached the top by now. The man hissed in frustration. Any lifeboats would have been on the lower level so they were for sure burned to a crisp. He turned around, looking for anything that could float.

"Come on, come on," he muttered. The crashing waves were doing nothing to the flames. If he didn't hurry…Dipper frantically looked around for _anything_ that would keep him afloat. Another flash of lightning illuminated the night, and as it did he saw his saving grace on the railing of the ship: a life preserver. He wanted to kick himself for being so stupid sometimes. He crammed the Cross into the loop of his belt, fastening and securing it in case of any other event. He wouldn't lose it again. The man would rather drown at this point than lose it almost a third time. His fingers barely had touched the preserver however before the lower deck exploded again, this time the force of all the fuel drums ramming him against the edge of the ship. With a great effort however he tumbled over the railing, grasping his only chance of floating and fell into the water.

The shock of the cold hit him like a dagger and Dipper quickly swam his body to the surface, one arm around the preserver. He looked behind him, wiping more sea water from his eyes. In a blaze of reds and yellows was the burning remains of the cargo ship. Breathing heavily he watched as it began sinking below the surface of the water. As he watched, a straw hat floated solemnly past him.

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><p>AN: Do you know how much I care about accuracy right now? That's right, ZERO percent. Cause it took way too long to get this out but now that I'm done I can do more DIALOGUE things and less action for a few chapters! Hold on to your caps kids cause conspiracy stuff gonna go down next chapter! Oh, and everyone Dipper beat up on that ship? They're dead. Assume they're all dead please. May their souls rest in piece.


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N**: I'm spoiling you all with updates to this story. Meanwhile "Mystery" is sitting off to the side with no updates for months. Oops. Did I ever mention that I hate writing action scenes? I'm much better at dialogue and the mundane business. Well, hopefully this story will become good practice for more action stuff. Look out for small TV show/film references in this chapter! There's a few of them that I put in for fun, not plot placement or anything special. Now you all finally get to see more Mabel and what she's been up to while Dipper was busy being a "stone-cold bad ass" in the last chapter!

**Disclaimer**: It is common knowledge that I do not have the right towards _Gravity Falls_. I do however own a Stan fez. Oh, and I don't claim ownership to anything created by George Lucas or Steven Spielberg. The franchise of _Indiana Jones_ belongs solely to them, as well as their abandoned scripts and their used ones.

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><p><span>Chapter 2: Professor Glasses and Museum Artifacts<span>

Mabel Pines walked along the halls of the Archaeology Building with a light spring to her step and humming her new favorite song that had come on the radio. She had heard from her fellow faculty members that the ever impressive Professor Dipper Pines had returned from another overseas trip, and she fully intended to give him a warm welcome home. The woman also wanted to look at the artifact he brought back for the museum. While her brother was the more professor-y type, the female Pines instead opted to work in the Marshall College Museum as an assistant curator. Well, now she was a _head_ curator of the museum. She beamed to herself, imagining the look on her brother's face when she'd be able to tell him the awesome news.

Rounding the corner she came across Lecture Hall 618, where she knew her brother was finishing up a scheduled lecture class. Mabel silently opened the door and slipped in, standing in the very back of the large hall. At the very front of the slanted room was her brother, doing his best to write something on the large blackboard legible enough to see from the back of the room. Pens and pencils scribbled furiously in notebooks as students took down notes, both from the blackboard and as their professor kept talking. Mabel was amused to find that some of the female students however were more focused on Dipper, and not at all in the studious way either. She spied a few notebook pages with little hearts doodled on them and other ridiculous things. It was hard to keep from grinning or chuckling when you saw girls write "Mrs. _ Pines", especially since they were fantasizing about her _brother_, probably the least romantic person she knew. Mabel took her eyes off of the sight and focused again on Dipper.

"Archaeology," Dipper was saying at the front of the room, "is the search for _fact_, not truth. If it's the truth you're interested in, then I suggest either the criminal justice classes with Professor Lestrade or better yet Doctor Hurtz's Philosophy class down the hall." A few of the students chuckled at this. Mabel checked the clock that was above the door, knowing that any minute now Dipper's class would be done and she'd get to talk to him properly. For now though she was resigned to listening to the rest of his lecture.

"I'm going to tell you straight out to get any ideas of lost cities, exotic travel, and trying to dig up the entire world out of your heads, cause that's not what archaeologists do. You don't follow old dusty maps to buried treasure, and X never, ever, marks the spot." The man was still writing on the blackboard with his back turned.

"Any questions?"

"Have you always been this big of a spoil sport or is that something you dug up recently?" A voice rang out. Dipper turned around and saw, at the very back of the room, his sister. As the class held back snickers of laughter and Dipper tried to find an appropriate response, the bell rang to signal the end of class. Regaining some of his professor like dignity he called out to the students who began packing up, "Next week we'll start off with Egyptology, starting with the excavation of Naucratis in 1885. Be sure to read up on the subject ahead of time." The students all filed out of the door one by one, and Mabel wove around them to make her way down to the front. She wasted no time in charging full throttle at her brother, enveloping him in her famous bone crushing hugs. Any air that Dipper had in his lungs was knocked out as his sisters arms wrapped around his torso and squeezed him tight.

"Welcome back!" She cried.

"Good to b-be back," Dipper gasped out as his lungs were crushed. Finally Mabel let go of him and he gratefully sucked in air to his deprived lungs. He re-adjusted his glasses, which had practically flown off him when his sister hugged him. Mabel frowned as he did so, crossing her arms.

"Why are you even wearing glasses? You don't even need 'em," she pointed out.

"They make me look more distinguished," he defended. Mabel scoffed. Leave it to her brother to try and boost his already big enough ego.

"They make you look like a four-eyed squint. And everyone knows Doctor Brennan is the only real squint around here,"

"Yeah, yeah, you're just jealous because I have a teaching position and you're just an assistant curator," Dipper quipped back, turning to organize his papers into the brown briefcase he owned. He didn't see the gleeful smile his sister had put on and was confused when he turned back to face her and she had an enormous grin.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing. Just that while you were gone Doctor Brody made me Head Curator since he took the new opening as Dean of Marshall College," Mabel pronounced proudly. Dipper's mouth dropped in amazement. He couldn't believe it! His own sister, museum curator?

"Seriously?" He asked. His sister nodded enthusiastically, practically bouncing on her feet as her excitement came back to give her an energy boost. "Mabel, that's fantastic!" He pulled her in for another hug, though his weren't as fierce as his sister's was. God was he proud of his sister. The day just kept getting better and better. He pulled away from Mabel, his own giant grin forming on his face. He knew just the present for the occasion!

"Alright Miss Head Curator," Dipper said dramatically. He tugged out an object wrapped in a worn brown cloth from his briefcase. He'd been meaning to give it to Doctor Brody, but since Mabel was now in charge of the museum, it seemed more fitting to give it to her. He held the wrapped item out to her.

"How's this for your first addition to the museum as its new supervisor?" Mabel took the object, slowly unwrapping the cloth. Then she gasped at the shining golden surface of the Cross of Coronado. She gently touched the artifact, eyes taking in every detail of it. She marveled at her brother's artifact retrieval skills. They'd be given honors in the museum for this one for sure. _The_ Cross of Coronado! Oh it would be the perfect addition to the Spanish collection they had acquired.

"Oh my God, Dipper," she whispered incredulously. He was still grinning at her.

"Do you know how long I've been looking for that?" The Pines asked. Mabel remembered. How could she forget? After that day back in California her brother had never shut up about it. The famous Cross of Coronado. He had vowed to bring it back to a museum. And now he had. To _her_ museum.

"All your life,"

"All my life," Dipper affirmed. Yep. Nearly getting killed on a cargo ship had been worth it for this moment. He sat on the edge of the table, hands in his pockets. Who said history was worthless? The feeling of success and achievement plus the look on his sister's face was reward enough for what he'd done. He felt like nothing could go wrong at this point. Mabel looked up from the Cross, still smiling.

"You know what we need right now?" She reached over and grabbed her brother's shoulder. "Victory drinks. Don't care where, don't care how, but we need to celebrate."

"Fine, but it'll be your treat," Dipper said. He grabbed the rest of his stuff and the Pines twins left for the door. Mabel walked right beside her brother, still carrying the Cross gently, as though it were an infant instead of a century old artifact. They walked to Dipper's office, where his assistant Irene sat at her small desk, working through papers. She looked up as Dipper and Mabel walked in.

"Oh, Professor Pines, your mail is on your desk and some students also dropped of papers for you to look at." She handed him the pile of papers and he took them, grimacing slightly. This was his least favorite part of his job. While he greatly enjoyed the teaching factor of being a professor, plus any research and recovery grants the college gave, he really disliked having to correct papers. He thanked his assistant and left Mabel in the anteroom as he entered his small cramped office. On the desk was some of his odd trinkets that he'd collected, as well as a large brown package. He picked it up, turning the little package over. Written in black ink on the brown paper was his address and name. As to where it came from, more writing revealed it to have originated from Venice, Italy. He frowned at it. Who in Venice would have sent him something? As far as he knew none of his contacts or "friends" were in Venice, but then again communication was a bit slow between North America and Europe. He shrugged and stuffed the package into his inside coat pocket deciding to open it later at his home. He returned to his sister who was striking up a conversation with his assistant.

"Look, I'm absolutely positive I can swing you a date with him. He's known me for years now and from the looks of it you might just be his type," Mabel was saying. The assistant looked incredibly relieved.

"Oh gosh, thank you Miss Pines! I don't know how I can repay you for this opportunity," she said. Mabel just smiled at her, saying it was no trouble at all and she was glad to do it. Dipper shook his head. Mabel was always trying to play matchmaker at the college. Seemed like that hadn't changed in the least. The two of them bid farewell to Dipper's assistant, and once again walked down the halls, Mabel continuing on with another conversation. They stopped at Mabel's new and larger office (which had belonged to Doctor Brody until he took the Dean position) and she placed the Cross into a safe which she kept hidden. Mabel intended to show it to Brody later on, but for now she'd just keep it safe in her office until then. After all the twins had important celebratory drinks to down.

Hours later the two Pines found themselves in one of their town's quieter bars, nursing drinks and sharing stories from the past few weeks. Dipper told his sister all about the trouble he went through to find the Cross, trying to sugarcoat some details of his incidents. Mabel, in turn, told him about her busy few weeks of helping organize museum showcases, locate more exhibits, and finally her promotion. As the two of them talked and drank, Dipper noticed two men in dark suits enter the room. They took up a table facing the Pines twins, and Dipper couldn't help but think they were watching them. He'd had enough "field experience" to know when someone was after him or spying on him.

He kept his eye on the two, and they on him. He noticed that they never ordered anything, not even a glass of water. Yeah, they were definitely trying to tail the Pines twins. Eventually he convinced Mabel to pay for their drinks so they could leave. She argued with him, saying they'd only been there for twenty minutes but Dipper pointed out they'd nearly been sitting in the bar drinking for two hours. Grudgingly Mabel finally agreed. They paid and left. Dipper noticed to his discomfort that the men in suits had gotten up as well and were going to follow them out. The male Pines led his sister out of the building, quickly walking down the road in an attempt to lose the men. He wasn't very lucky in his plan. There had been a vehicle outside of the bar waiting for the two of them to come out.

The black Sedan rolled up beside them on the street and a dark haired man stepped out of the passenger side. Dipper was immediately on edge, stepping in front of his sister. Mabel noticed and tried to be more alert as well. The man in the suit took off his hat before he spoke.

"Are you Doctor Pines of the Marshall College?" the man asked. Dipper gave the man a suspicious look. He couldn't even count how many times someone who asked that ended up getting him into deeper trouble.

"That depends on who's asking," he replied diffidently. Mabel's hand was on his shoulder, giving him quiet support. She wasn't as used to these kinds of situations as him. Dipper was the field expert. Mabel just the museum worker who put whatever he found on display. But the hand she put on Dipper's shoulder also mean that she had his back. The suited man began to speak again, not taking notice of the silent communication between the twins.

"That would be my employer. Please, if you could get in the vehicle. Mr. Gleeful would like to speak with you, as well as your sister."

* * *

><p>The Pines twins were left in a very fancy apartment room a quarter of an hour later. At the time of their arrival a fancy dinner party it seemed was in progress, but the two of them were taken into another room, away from the social event. As they waited for whoever this "Gleeful" person was, Dipper and Mabel took stock of the room. Piano music filtered in from the adjacent room and Mabel wandered the room looking at everything. The walls were covered in maps of the world, both recent and ancient. Artwork in beautiful rosewood or willow frames were artfully hung up as well, and pedestals showed off other treasures. Dipper examined these carefully, noting their origin and the excellent care that they had been given. It was almost as good as the Marshall College's Museum. He glanced at his sister, who was admiring an old sea chart and smiled. Well, almost.<p>

"This collection is amazing," Mabel said as she restrained herself from touching anything. Dipper put his hands in his jacket pockets. Across the room a rather ornate table caught his eye, where atop it sat a slab of stone. Curiosity peaked he wandered over to it. Mabel noticed his movement and joined him as he examined the slab. It was certainly old, and unfortunately broken, missing what looked like the entire bottom half of itself. There were symbols inscribed into the stone. Mabel nearly grimaced. These kind of symbols weren't her area of expertise. She looked at Dipper. His brown eyes were raking over the tablet and she could tell he was slowly translating whatever they said. The woman took another sweeping look around the room.

"Whoever collected all this stuff has great taste," she said quietly.

"Well coming from one of the curators at the famous Marshall College, I will take that as a compliment," a voice said. Dipper looked up from his translating to see that someone had entered the room. Immediately he knew that this had to be Mr. Gleeful. He was a big man with highly styled hair and a baby blue suit. Dipper didn't even know suits came in those colors. Gleeful walked over to the Pines and the stone tablet.

"Gideon Gleeful, though I assume you figured that one out," he said, holding out a hand. Dipper shook it, taking quick note of the man's Southern accent. Well he certainly had some Southern influence in his outfit choice. Gideon shook Mabel's hand as well, Dipper noticing that the other man's hand lingered longer on his sister's hand. A red flag raised in his mind and he was instantly a little more on edge.

"Impressive collection you have here Mr. Gleeful," Dipper said trying to pull the attention away from Mabel. Gleeful politely dropped Mabel's hand to his disguised relief.

"Like yourself Doctor Pines I have a passion for antiquities," he said, "I notice your interest in this particular piece," the man indicated the tablet.

"Sandstone. Early Latin text, I'm guessing from the mid twelfth century," Dipper said easily. Mabel gave the tablet her own examination from an art historian's point of view.

"Christian symbol as well," she said, pointing out the ornate cross symbol in the center, though the broken half of it only displayed part of what she was assuming was a cross. Gleeful nodded at both of their examinations. He wouldn't deny that he was impressed by their quick observations after only seeing the slab for a minimum of ten minutes.

"Impressive," the man looked down at the broken tablet for a moment. Something about the artifact was bothering Dipper though.

"If I might ask, where did you uncover this?" he asked.

"Mountain region north of Ankara, Turkey. Some of my engineers were excavating for copper when they found this. After bringing it back I had some experts in Latin try to translate what they could from it. Though, I assume you've done the same as well?" The male Pines' eyes fell towards the tablet again. Yes, he had attempted a quick translation though the rest was cut off.

"Across the desert and through the mountain to the Canyon of the Crescent Moon, to the temple where the Guardian sits waiting to reveal the knowledge of God," he recited.

"The knowledge of God," Gleeful repeated, "something I believe every man would like to know."

"It's all ancient paranormal legends. Urban or local folklore," Dipper said uninterested. Knowledge of God? That was something people would have wars over. He didn't want to touch that subject with a ten foot pole.

"Perhaps, but it's also every man's dream to have such knowledge. Including your grandfather's and great uncle's I believe," Gleeful said. Mabel quickly glanced at her brother, noticing he had very subtly tensed at the mention of their grandfather.

"Our great uncle and grandfather were experts in lore of every kind. Latin and paranormal myths were their specialty," Mabel put in, hesitant on her brother's reaction. The subject of their Grandpa Stan was always touchy these days, given how close Dipper and Stanley had been. As she thought, Dipper had fallen silent now, staring at the tablet with an unreadable expression.

"There's more to the translation than just that though, isn't there Doctor Pines," Gleeful said. Dipper barely acknowledged him, so he continued.

"I've begun a project to search for the Temple location, you see. The project leader of ours has confirmed there are more markers that will lead us to this temple, such as this marker," he indicated the tablet again. "Unfortunately however, our project leader has gone missing. My associate Dr. Northwest has confirmed through cable that they have no clue to his whereabouts. I'd like you to pick up where he left off and find what became of him." Mabel was now watching her brother closely. Normally he would jump at the chance of a "treasure hunt", but this one may have hit a little closer to home for Dipper. The fact that it was the same research that their grandfather used to do might put him off. He didn't do "paranormal" anymore. Dipper was firmly set in what he lectured about: finding fact, not fiction. The man's arms left his pockets, crossing in front of chest instead.

"You've got the wrong Pines for this job Mr. Gleeful," Dipper said. He walked around the tablet and grabbed his sister's arm, taking both of them to the door to leave.

"I suggest you find my great uncle and hire a paranormal researcher like him, not us," he continued at the door, hand on the knob.

"We already have. You see, it's your great uncle that was our project leader and is the man missing," Gleeful said.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Dun dun DUUUNNNN. "But wait Sponty! The original movie had them looking for the Holy Grail!" Why yes unidentifiable voice, you are correct. But I did say I would be changing it to best fit BOTH mediums. Which means we can't have our famous Pines looking for a Holy Grail if it's not mentioned in the show. But you know what is mentioned? _Secrets of the universe and gateways to unimaginable power._ I don't give away plot points for free though kiddies, so I'll name my price for more chapters and more knowledge: Please leave a review if you enjoyed it, and if you didn't, leave one anyways telling me how I can improve. Thanks!


	4. Chapter 3

**A/N**: So how 'bout that latest episode huh? *strained laughter* Oh Alex, you kidder you._ Ahaha._ Yeah. Anyways I have a slight recommendation for all of you followers. If you _have_ watched _The Last Crusade, _**forget everything**. If you haven't seen it, keep it that way. _Everything is different now guys. _So this won't follow things precisely.

Disclaimer: I own nothing except a laptop, some hats, books, DVDs, and a heck of a bunch of candy canes. _Gravity Falls _and _Indiana Jones_ are not mine by any rights and are rightfully owned by their original creators and distributors.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 3: Case of the Missing Pines<span>

_Missing._ Stanford Pines, expert on international paranormal occurrences and history, researcher for up to forty years on the myths and legends from around the world, had gone _missing_. Dipper and Mabel were being driven to their great uncle's home in the neighboring town of Twin Falls. Gleeful had left them with a calling card, telling them that they could call at almost any time if Dipper Pines changed his mind about the job. He assured the man he wouldn't, stalking out of the building. Mabel had been given the card in his stead then hurriedly followed her brother to the waiting black Sedan.

The two of them just sat in silence in the moving vehicle. Dipper was tense, staring out of the window and lost deep in his thoughts. For once Mabel didn't even know what he could be thinking. He kept saying he wouldn't take the job. He wouldn't go out and find their great uncle. But that was only if Gleeful had been telling the truth, hence their trip to Twin Falls to see for themselves. Dipper wasn't going to do anything until he saw evidence for himself. He would follow his philosophy: search for fact.

* * *

><p>"Dipper!" Mabel called after her brother who was hurriedly walking ahead of her, almost running. "Dipper would you slow down?" The black Sedan they had been riding in was parked on the sidewalk in front of a quaint town house. Mabel caught up at the foot of the porch steps. She'd never seen her brother this worked up before, tense and even a little bit scared. Dipper went to knock on the door, but as he did so it opened on its own. The twins shared a look. It had already been open, meaning someone else had been here before them. Or still was.<p>

Dipper gave his sister a look that clearly said "stay silent". If the door was open like this someone might still be there. They slowly pushed the door open, it creaking in the process. The sight of a trashed room greeted them, and they entered their great uncle's house with care. Chairs and the coffee table was knocked over. Any papers that were sitting around littered the room on the floor. Books were scattered as well, some of them with pages torn out. Dipper didn't like this. Someone had been looking for something here.

"Stay put in here while I check the house," Dipper whispered to his sister. He wanted to make sure the place was in fact empty. Dipper went through the rest of the one story house, making an entire sweep. He was silent as he did so but every room revealed the same trashed appearance, with no sign of either Stan or the people who ransacked it in the first place. His feet led him to what he assumed was Stan's office or study. It had taken the most damage out of all of the rooms. Cabinets that held papers or other research had been torn apart, the papers littering the floor in heaps. Even the desk had been thrown to the floor in the wreckage.

"What did you get yourself into Stan," he muttered to himself. Whoever was looking for something here must not have found it, but they certainly did a job of turning it upside down to find it. But all of it left him with no answers as to what happened to their great uncle. Dipper re-joined his sister in the living room.

Mabel had tried to clean up some of the mess, righting the coffee table and gathering the scattered book pages. She looked up hopefully when she heard her brother enter the room.

"Stan's not here," he told her. Mabel took a deep breath. Somehow she knew he wouldn't be. The state of the house was the biggest clue to that. The woman set the papers she'd gathered onto the coffee table and began picking up more. One of the things she picked up was an envelope and she turned it in her hands. There was also a newspaper with the day's date on the floor next to where the envelope was. This had been today's mail then.

"They even went through his mail from today," Mabel said absent mindedly. Dipper looked around the room, still studying the mess. Why would they go through his mail too? The old man never received much, nor would he probably ask for research to be sent via the postal system. Dipper crossed his arms again and as he did so something from his inside pocket pushed against him. He remembered it being that package he had gotten in the mail. Wait, he had gotten it in the mail. The _mail_. _For crying out loud!_

"The mail! Mabel that's it!" Dipper suddenly shouted. He pulled out the brown package from his office, turning it over to the address written on it. _Venice, Italy. _Mabel looked at him confused as he began to get excited.

"Mabel, did Gleeful tell you where Grunkle Stan was last seen? Where was he before disappearing?" He asked.

"Um, Venice. But I don't get it, why is that-"

"I got this from Venice today. It has to be from him. Whatever they were looking for here in Stan's house, they didn't find it. That's because he sent it to _me_," Dipper explained quickly. He began tearing apart the paper, revealing the package to be a maroon and slightly beat up journal. He began flipping through pages. Words and sketches all made in ink met his eyes as he flipped through pages, remembering snatches of them from when he would watch his grandfather Stanley put them in the journal. Page after page was research and notes about myths and legends, the paranormal, and Latin verses. The handwriting eventually changed three quarters of the way through, indicating where Grunkle Stan had taken over putting notes in.

"That's Grampa Stanley's journal," Mabel said as she walked over.

"This was his entire life's work. His and Grunkle Stan's." Dipper closed the book, frowning at the maroon cover. "So why did he send it to me?"

"Someone must want it pretty badly," Mabel replied. That was it then. Whoever wanted the journal wanted it for something, forcing Stan to send it to the only people he knew he might trust: his niece and nephew. And it looked like this time he had caught them up in a great big mess. Dipper knew he had to help his great uncle. Whatever was going on with his project was bigger than the old man could handle this time, and he needed help.

"Mabel, call that Gleeful guy. Tell him I need a ticket to Venice," Dipper said.

"I'll tell him we'll take two," Mabel said, going for their uncle's telephone. Dipper shook his head.

"Oh no, I'm not taking you on this. You're not cut out for field work Mabel," he tried reasoning. His sister waved him off, ignoring his point.

"Oh please, I'm great at field work! Remember that time we got stuck in that old Indian palace or temple thing?"

"You almost got lowered in lava,"

"Yeah but I still saved your butt later," Mabel had her back turned to him as she was fiddling with the phone, trying to put in the number. Dipper rubbed the bridge of his nose with a forefinger and thumb. The only reason Mabel had "saved" him was because she chopped the rope bridge in half, nearly causing them to fall into an angry reptile infested river.

"Mabel, this isn't some kind of accidental treasure hunt. Whoever is after this journal will be after us too. They'll probably even try to kill us. There's no way I'm letting you get tangled up in all that," Dipper told his sister.

"So what then," she spun around to face him. "You expect me to just sit here and play collector and pretend you aren't getting hurt or worse? Because guess what, I do that every time you leave. I have to stay here, trying not to think about you not coming back. And what about Grunkle Stan? He's my family too Dipper and I want to help get him back just as much as you do. So whether you like it or not, I am coming." Mabel finished, arms crossing against her chest defiantly. Dipper sighed knowing at this point it was no use trying to argue. Mabel would be set in her ways and it was as pointless as a circle trying to make her see other logic.

"Fine, but we do this by _my_ rules, got it?" He finally said. "You follow my lead and don't go off on your own hunches." His sister smiled brightly, promising she would then began dialing Gideon Gleeful's number. As his sister talked to the Southern man, Dipper once again thumbed through the journal, trying to figure out any clues before they left for Venice.

* * *

><p>"So what's the plan when we get to Venice?" Mabel asked over the noise of the small airfield. She and Dipper were grabbing their luggage out of the black limo they arrived in, preparing to hand it off for it to be loaded onto their plane. The question was directed to Gideon Gleeful, who had decided to see them off. It was his private company plane after all.<p>

"My good friend Doctor Northwest will be there to meet you," he said. "And don't worry, I have an apartment waiting at your disposal as well."

"Great, that means we don't have to waste money on a crummy hotel," Mabel said cheerfully before leaving to board the plane. Dipper hung back and reached out to shake Gideon's hand.

"Thank you Mr. Gleeful," he said. The two men shook, but once again Dipper's unease about this man came back. Like something wasn't right about the whole thing. It was gone a second later however as Gideon let go.

"Good luck to you Doctor Pines. And be very careful. Don't trust anybody," the man watched as Dipper boarded. Minutes later the airplane began its take off sequence, rising steadily into the sky with one final destination: Venice, Italy. Dipper looked out the window to watch the quickly receding ground. _Hang on Grunkle Stan,_ he thought. He looked over to Mabel on the other side of the aisle, who was looking out the window with great interest. Though he had told her that he didn't want her coming because it was dangerous, privately he was glad that she was. Mabel would always have his back, no matter how hard or weird or incredibly perilous their situation. The plane rose higher until eventually settling on a decent altitude.

_We're on our way._

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Apologies for this being a little shorter than the last few. I'm back at my old batting average I guess. But now they're off to Venice! Who knows what adventures lie in wait for them? What secrets will be uncovered? Find out next time in: _The Pines Twins and the Last Crusade: Chapter 4- Return of the Magister_. (That's a working title actually. But still plot relevant.)


	5. Chapter 4

**A/N**: AANNNDD WE'RE BACK TO MY AVERAGE WORD COUNT AW YEAH. The main reason these take so long is because I always hesitate on what to do with the story. Like, this is one of the first in which I haven't planned out scenes thoroughly. I'm relying heavily upon the original screenplay of _The Last Crusade_ and since I've already strayed from it it's a bit weird in writing it. Like, the part after this chapter is going to be so, _so_ strange to write. But I forget myself. We're still on this chapter. Warning readers now that a certain blondie is going to be a little OOC.

**Disclaimer:** You guys remember my original character Bill, right? No? Shame. *Hands cards to OC Bill* Wait, why am I doing the- ooohhh, hehe you evil thing you. _*ahem*_ The author of this story "insert-name-here" does not claim ownership to any of the materials mentioned in this story. _Gravity Falls_ and _Indiana Jones _are legally owned by Walt Disney Animation Studios and Paramount Pictures respectively. Do enjoy.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 4:<span> C'era una volta un uomo da Venezia

_"__Hey Grampa, what's that?"_

_"__It's a journal kiddo."_

_"__Oh. What's that for?"_

_"__For writing in."_

_"__So what're you writing 'bout?"_

_"__Why don't you come and see?" A much younger Dipper Pines was hoisted up onto his grandfather's lap. The boy looked at the neat pages of the journal, amazed at all the big, complex words that were written on them. There were even pictures too! All of it was printed in semi-neat handwriting with the inkwell pen on the desk, and the boy was careful not to touch the fresh writing._

_"__What's it all say?" Dipper asked, turning his head to his grandfather. Stanley turned the pages back to the beginning of the book._

_"__It's all of my research. Collections of notes from all kind of places for all sorts of things. But most importantly, it's a guide," the man said._

_"__So it's a treasure map!" Dipper exclaimed excitedly, a big grin on his face. _

_"__Well not exactly. You see, it's more like a-" _

_"__What are you two up to in here?" a voice from the door asked. Both Stanley and Dipper looked up to see Stanford leaning on the frame, an amused smile on his face. _

_"__Grampa's got a treasure map!" Dipper told him. Stanley gave his brother a hopeless shrug. How could you possibly explain that it was anything other than that? Stanford laughed, walking over to ruffle the little boy's mess of brown hair. Dipper scrunched his face in a small pout as his great uncle did so._

_"__Is that right?" _

_"__Yeah," Dipper looked up at both of the older men. "And one day we're gonna find the treasure it leads to!" Stanley only smiled, saying nothing as he closed the journal._

_"__Well for now how about you get some treasured sleep?" he suggested. Dipper pouted again._

_"__Not tired," the boy sulked. _

_"__That so?" Without warning Stanley suddenly picked the boy up and slung him over his shoulder. Dipper gave a cry that was a mix of both surprise and delight, laughing as his grandfather carried him off to his bedroom. He found Mabel along the way and carried her as well, the little girl giggling and calling him "Grampa Horsy". Stanford shut off the lights in the study room before making his way to the twins', smiling as he heard the three in the room already talking excitedly._

_"__Alright, whose turn was it for tonight?" Stanley was asking. _

_"__Mabel's turn!" Dipper answered immediately from his position on the top bunk. Mabel immediately ran over to their bookshelf, face scrunched up in thought as she tried picking a book. Finally after some thought she pulled one off from the lower shelf, running back to her bed and handing it to Stanley. Stanford came in and took a seat in one of the comfy chairs, everyone else getting more comfortable as well as Stanley began opening the little book and reading._

_"_The Many Adventures of Robin Hood_," he began. Mabel was clutching her current favorite stuffed animal, a small white and black spotted cat, close to her chest, already engrossed into the story. Dipper had a small black lamb toy wrapped up in his arms, trying to look over the railing of his bunk to see some of the pictures on the pages as his grandfather read. _

_Half an hour later both twins were asleep and more comfortably tucked in by their guardians. The much older Pines twins moved to the living room._

_"__A treasure map huh?" Stanford said, one eyebrow raised._

_"__His words, not mine Stan," his brother replied. _

_"__Wasn't that far off though," Stanford pointed out. Stanley sighed, leaning back on the couch to stare at the ceiling._

_"__Sometimes I think he asks way more questions than he needs to. Curiosity like that could get him in trouble later on,"_

_"__Kid's just like you then."_

_"__That's what I'm afraid of."_

* * *

><p>Dipper was rudely awoken from his dreams as the plane hit turbulence, causing his head to smack painfully against the window. He jerked his head back, groaning at the slight pain that was now fading away above his left eye. He rubbed his face groggily. They had to be arriving to their destination soon enough. Pulling out the maroon journal he flipped through the pages once again, stopping on one with a pencil sketch of a stained glass window with a series of numbers underneath. It had been one of the last few pages Grunkle Stan had added, and Dipper was hoping to find some sort of clue about his disappearance from it.<p>

"Doctor Pines!" Dipper looked up from the journal. The copilot was turned around in his seat to talk to him.

"We'll be landing soon. There's a water bus at the landing strip that will take you into the city once we get there," the man said. Dipper nodded his thanks and looked over at his sister. She had put her knees up, a large sketchbook resting against them and a stick of charcoal striking lines on the page. Her intense concentration prevented him from saying anything to her. Most likely she had heard the copilot as well but didn't acknowledge it, continuing on her sketches.

They landed not long after, and the pilot pointed them in the direction of the small ferry boat that would take them further into the city. While Dipper was desensitized to the flurry of activity that Venice showed, Mabel was captivated by it. It had been a long time since she had been overseas, and for that matter had never been to Venice before either. As their ferry navigated the major canals of the city, Mabel was constantly pointing things out to her brother, whether it be the amazing architecture or some odd artistry. He figured this kind of thing would happen. After all, Venice in particular had been a HUGE part of the Renaissance time, when art in particular had reached a critical turning point. Mabel probably appreciated the change more than any citizen living here.

Gondolas and other small vessels passed by theirs as they reached their boat landing. Mabel stretched her arms up and took a deep breath of the Venetian air.

"Ah, Venice!" she said with infinite joy. Dipper only adjusted his hold on his bag, leading them off the dock. He was more concerned with who this Northwest person was. They didn't even know what he looked like, so how were they supposed to find him. When he voiced this to Mabel, she shrugged.

"Maybe he'll know us," she suggested. As they left the dock they passed by a blonde woman, who looked down at a set of photographs as they walked by. She stuffed them into a pocket before calling out to them.

"Excuse me, are you Doctor Pines?" The Pines twins turned around. The woman caught up to them. The first thing Dipper noticed was the blonde hair and blue eyes combination. In his experience that generally meant German, which only put him on guard. His memory went back to the fiasco he experienced years ago with a certain sacred relic. The moment Germans were involved anything could go wrong. Unfortunately Mabel hadn't had the same knowledge and experiences as he did, and became talkative.

"He sure is! Who're you?" She asked. The blonde woman tucked a strand of hair back then held it out for them to shake.

"Doctor Pacifica Northwest," she responded smiling. Mabel shook first, then Dipper, who noticed to his surprise that while this Dr. Northwest certainly _looked _German, she wasn't. There was an American accent to her voice. That didn't completely ease his suspicions however. After all, any person could competently fake an American accent with enough practice.

"Pleasure," he said with what he hoped was a convincing enough smile. Pacifica Northwest returned it, and Dipper was struck by how beautiful she actually was. He had been too focused earlier about whether or not to trust her that he didn't notice her appearance besides the blue and blonde. Politely coughing he turned his gaze away before he became all to allured, hoping to God that his face wasn't reddening as it at times tended to. Fortunately the woman didn't seem to notice.

"I'm so glad you could make it all the way out here. It's been a big setback on our project since Doctor Pines' disappearance," Pacifica said.

"Well we're here to find him," Mabel said, "So let's start with where he last was and work it out." Pacifica nodded.

"Of course. Then follow me to the library."

* * *

><p>"This," Mabel asked, head tilted upwards at the enormous building, "is a <em>library<em>?" It was no wonder she was surprised. Dipper had to admit that he was as well. The library looked more like an enormous cathedral than your standard library. The building was surrounded by a large piazza, with people milling about, all on their general business. It was an impressive site of large gray stone, and from the outside you could see traces of stained glass windows with a barrage of colors. They entered through large and well decorated wooden doors, where the interior of the building was just as impressive. Tall bookshelves were lined everywhere with thousands of books and tomes contained within.

"Looks more like a church," Dipper said as they entered.

"In this case it's the literal truth," Pacifica replied. "They converted this church into a library long ago. We're on holy ground now." The woman pointed out four pillars.

"These were brought back as spoils of war from Byzantium during the Crusades," she continued. Dipper examined them with interest. He also found that he was starting to respect Dr. Northwest. He most of all knew not to judge by outward appearances, but the woman was surprisingly knowledgeable about her ancient history. On the other hand though he figured Gideon Gleeful wouldn't have just hired anybody as an assistant to a project of this scale.

Out of the corner of his eye he noticed the light from outside strike something colorful, and he turned to see an illuminated stained glass window. He stared at it for a long time, knowing he had seen it somewhere before. The stained glass depicted a Knight of the Crusades. Tearing his gaze away he followed after his sister and Pacifica, who had resumed talking, though not about the library.

"Last I saw your great uncle was over here in the library. He sent me to fetch an ancient map of the city, but by the time I returned he was gone. All that was left was this scrap of paper on the table," she held out the piece to Dipper, who took it for both he and Mabel to study. The only things the paper revealed was a sequence of I's, V's, and X's.

"Roman numerals. A three, seven and ten," Mabel said out loud. Dipper frowned slightly. He knew he had seen these before, and not just because almost anyone knew Roman numerals. He'd seen them recently. As he was trying to rack his brains to remember where from, Pacifica gave one of her smiles.

"If you'll excuse me. The library is closing soon, but I'll arrange for us to stay a while longer," she said and returned to the entryway where they had come from. Dipper waited until she was out of sight and earshot before slipping the maroon journal out of his jacket, flipping through the manila pages, skimming through the images.

"Something catch your attention?" Mabel inquired, taking the numeral scrap from him and glancing around. The library really was enormous…

"Hang on, I just know I've- here!" He stopped on a page depicting a stained glass window. The same as the one currently in the library, Crusades knight and all. And right below it-

"The Roman numerals!" Mabel breathed out in excitement. Dipper scanned the page again and looked up at the actual window.

"Stan was onto something here, I just know it," he whispered. Mabel crossed her arms, tilting her head this way and that as she also looked at the window. Though normally any artwork under her scrutiny would be a breeze to analyze or identify, this was more clues and mysteries which wasn't her department. But Mabel figured it didn't hurt to try and help in any way she could.

"Well it's all well and good that we _found_ the source of the numbers, but we still don't know a lick about what they could mean," she stated. Dipper didn't answer. In fact, he was absolutely silent. Mabel turned to see him thoughtfully gnawing on the crook of his index finger, eyes glancing back and forth from the journal to the window. Mabel could already see where the skin was beginning to turn red and slightly swollen from his teeth. She vaguely remembered that when he was in deep thought like this he liked to chew on things (namely pencils and pens until they snapped) and it seemed that his index finger was a habitual substitute.

The sound of clacking footsteps knocked him out of his train of thought and Dipper quickly hid the journal into the inside of his jacket again, his sister giving him a quizzical look.

"Grunkle Stan sent me the journal for a reason," he whispered to her. "And until we find out why, we keep the journal a secret, alright?" Mabel nodded, pulling her thumb and index finger across her lips in a zipping motion as Pacifica rejoined them.

"Find anything?" She asked. Mabel shrugged, but Dipper's hand came up to his mouth and he began tapping his cheek as he walked around the floor, looking both at the stained glass window, then towards other directions as well. Mabel suddenly understood: he _had_ found something.

"I'm starting to get a hunch here," he said, turning himself in circles. With his fingers he kept signaling the numbers: three, seven, and ten. Finally his pacing and turning came to a halt, with him facing the stained glass window. A smile of satisfaction crossed his features as he began putting the few clues together. Grunkle Stan wasn't just copying the window down for nothing. It meant something, as did the numbers. The knight. It wasn't just any old knight from the Crusades. And Pacifica had said so herself that the library had been a church. And what did most churches have in common?

"Stan was looking for old maps of the city, right?" He directed the question at Pacifica.

"That's correct," she answered. _Thought so_, Dipper thought.

"He was looking for the tomb," Dipper said.

"Umm, who's tomb?" Mabel asked. Dipper pointed at the center of the stained glass window where the image of the knight was.

"His." Dipper spun back around, eyes alight with excitement. Oh, this was what he _lived _for!

"But that tomb could be anywhere in the city," Pacifica exclaimed, but Dipper was shaking his head.

"No, no it's here. Somewhere in the library. You said it yourself that this is used to be a church." Once again the marble columns of the library caught his attention. Following it upwards his heart leapt as there engraved at the top was one of the numbers.

"Three!" Dipper almost shouted, pointing at the top of the column. Mabel began glancing around as well, now on the same hunt for the numbers. And if she was following her brother's train of thought correctly…

"Seven!" Mabel pointed to another one of the columns. Dipper was thrumming with energy. Two down, one to go.

"Everyone look for the ten," he instructed, and the three of them fanned out, checking any of the structures. Dipper walked past bookshelves and the other columns, scouring everywhere to find the last number. He noticed Mabel and Pacifica searching among the bookshelves. Dipper began ruffling his hair in frustration. It couldn't be that hard to find a giant ten right? Head in his hands he looked down, noticing for the first time the green in the floor tiles. Blinking he lifted his head, noticing a pattern on the tile.

"You have got to be kidding me," he muttered. He found the nearest spiral staircase that led to the second level of the library, and looked down over one of its balcony railings to the tile floor below. Dipper smiled wryly.

"Guys!" Mabel and Pacifica both heard Dipper call out and came running back, looking around.

"Up here." Mabel looked up to see her brother leaning forward on the balcony railing above them.

"What are you doing up there," Pacifica asked, almost impatiently. Dipper pointed at the ground, and both women looked at the tile floor, not noticing anything out of the ordinary, or a large ten. Mabel looked up again at her brother, giving him a frown.

"What are you playing at Dipper?" she asked.

"Remember how I said 'x' never marks the spot?" Dipper was referring to his last lecture. That moment almost seemed like ages ago, but Mabel remembered. She looked at the floor again, this time noticing the green tiles matching up to intersecting lines. Pacifica gasped in understanding and Mabel grinned. It was a giant X, the ten they were looking for.

"So do I get to tell your students about this exception, or would you like the honors?"

"Ha ha. Now help me figure out how to bust open the floor."

* * *

><p>The last remaining library worker was busily stamping the few remaining books that were to be returned. A small name plate at his checkout desk read "Alesio Insana". His supervisor had told him that three people had been granted permission to remain a while longer after the establishment had closed. He had unfortunately been in the vicinity when the blonde woman had made the request, so he had been given the task of remaining behind to lock up once they were done. Secretly Alesio thought the only reason he was given the job was because he was the newest employee. Typical. Give the newbie the unwanted jobs and work past his hours.<p>

Continuing with his repetitive and honestly boring work, Alesio looked up as a movement near the door caught his attention. A group of men were entering the library, looking around as though they were hunting for something. Alesio stood up from his seat, moving around the desk to stop them from going any further.

"_I am sorry Sirs, but the library is closed right now,_" he said in Italian. Who he assumed was the leader stepped forward, locking eyes with Alesio, who was struck with how…well odd they were. This man's irises were like obsidian, and although he was smiling it did not show in his gaze.

"_This will not take long I assure you,_" the stranger assured. A sudden boom and cracking suddenly echoed through the library. The man swore in what sounded like Latin and walked past Alesio, who attempted to stop him. Before he could even utter an objection however one of the other men came up from behind him. A cloth was pressed against his face and Alesio panicked, smelling the unmistakable smell of chemicals. Before long he was unconscious, left slumped against his desk.

* * *

><p><em>CRACK<em>

The tile square at the intersection of the X broke apart and Mabel tossed away the broken pieces. Dipper and Pacifica had been standing off to the side as she had hammered at the floor with a borrowed brass stand. All that remained now was a square hole, which led downwards, most likely into the remains of the old church. The three of them knelt down and looked into it, but were unable to discern anything.

"I'm rather impressed with you two," Pacifica said suddenly. "You both are a lot like your great uncle."

"Yeah except he's lost and we're not," Dipper replied. He looked at Pacifica.

"Ladies first," he said, hands out to indicate the hole they had made. To his surprise she didn't hesitate and slowly began lowering herself down, dropping only a few feet to the floor below. Dipper heard a small splash as she landed. _Not that deep then, _Dipper thought. Mabel was about to follow the blonde down when Dipper stopped her.

"Mabel, stay here," he told her. She began to argue but he cut her off, shoving the journal into her hands.

"Look after this, and stay guard. Don't let anyone follow after us," Dipper instructed. Mabel still wanted to argue and he knew it. But he was certain someone would be after them now that they were in Venice. And Mabel showed surprising talent at being a guard. Probably because she paid attention to almost anything. But Mabel must have realized some of the same, because she nodded in understanding.

"Alright. Good luck," she told him as he lowered himself down as well. When he let go of the hole's ledge he only fell for about a second before his feet hit a shallow puddle, successfully getting his shoes wet. There was a small click and a spark, and then the room was filled with a small amount of light. Dipper blinked to adjust his eyes and saw that Pacifica held a cigarette lighter in her hands, the flame giving them ample light.

"You're well prepared," he commented, nodding at the lighter.

"It was a recent gift," she replied, and moved it around to give them an idea of where they were. A door at the other end gaped at them, and Dipper led the way to it, Pacifica following with the light.

Meanwhile above them Mabel was holding the brass bar in her hands, eyes shifting this way and that. She took this job seriously after a few experiences of what happened when they hadn't watched their back. Memories of being in an Indian cultist ceremony came back to her and she grimaced. While she would always tell Dipper differently, that whole fiasco had been in fact terrifying. But that wouldn't happen this time.

"Nothing gets past ol' Mabel Pines: master lookout," she told herself. Suddenly something grabbed her shoulder from behind. Immediately she swung the bar around, the object connecting with a man's stomach. He dropped to the floor with a grunt, all the air in his lungs knocked out of him.

"Yes!" Mabel cheered, pumping her fist in the air. "Take that! No one gets the drop on-"her self-praise was cut off as a cloth was pressed firmly against her mouth and nose. Mabel tried screaming and began struggling, but whoever had grabbed her wasn't as clumsy as the other guy and made sure to hold her firmly. Mabel's head began to swim as the chemicals began affecting her, and her movements slowed. She felt herself being lowered to the ground and was left with a view of the ceiling. As her vision blurred she saw pale hair and dark eyes look down at her.

"Sorry Miss Pines," the man said. Even though she was slowly falling into unconsciousness, she registered the accent as a light English one. It even sounded…apologetic. That was a new one: an apologetic bad guy. Then she was out. The pale haired man began humming a light tune, walking around the hole in the tile floor.

_"__There once were two twins in Venice,"_ he began singing lightly, _"who knew secrets much too tremendous. They sent me to stop them, and watch as they drop then for knowledge is a dangerous thing."_

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Alesio Insana is a legit Italian name don't judge me. Did you know Italians also apparently don't have last names beginning with "H"? Weirdos. Oh well. Turns out I changed the chapter title 'cause I changed something halfway through to make this stick closer to the original story. That rhyme took me thirty minutes to come up with too. Sing it how you wish, it accidentally came out as a limerick. Prizes will be given out to whoever guesses my little cameo appearances. Read and Review please!

*Edit* Soo, _someone_ (AKA Danny) forgot to tell me I had a lot more line breaks and I had to got back and erase the original marker. It's all good now. Nothing to see here.


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